Council of Europe shares Hungary’s concerns about Ukraine education law

The Council of Europe (CoE) shares Hungary’s concerns related to the Ukraine education law, a letter sent by CoE Secretary-General Thorbjorn Jagland to Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó on Friday showed.

In the letter dated October 5, Jagland said that

the law “seems to provide less favourable conditions for minority language education in Ukraine.”

The secretary-general said that he had expressed his concerns to the Ukrainian authorities, as well as to the Committee of Ministers on September 27.

“As a result, the Ukrainian authorities decided to request the expertise of the Venice Commission on this law,” he added.

Jagland said he also plans to discuss the issue with the Ukrainian education minister during her visit in Strasbourg and expressed hope to “find ways to cooperate in order to make sure that the legislation of our member state, Ukraine, is in line with our standards.”

Jagland expressed the firm belief that “the respect of our core values, among which the rights of national minorities, is of paramount importance for a strong and democratic Europe”.